The present invention pertains to communication system subscriber services and more particularly to maintenance and storage of subscriber (user) service profiles.
In existing cellular communications systems, user service profiles and subscription restriction agreements are currently stored in a centralized home location register (HLR). The HLR is typically a large database which is owned and configured by the network operator, the local telephone company. User service profiles include the kinds of services to which a user subscribes, for example, call waiting, call forwarding and three-way calling, etc. Subscription restriction agreements include those which govern functions such as roaming with a cellular phone. All such user information is commonly stored in a HLR which is maintained and configured by a telephone company.
Changes to the user's service profile are administered by the telephone company which provides the operation support system (OSS). Typically the HLR is a single function within each Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN). In order to affect changes the user must submit a service change request for either roaming services or basic subscription services or both. The restriction agreements governing roaming functions and others may be distributed among other HLRs in other Public Land Mobile Networks (PLMN) based on the service level agreement between the various telephone operations companies. The service level agreements allow each telephone operating company to generate revenue based on subscribers from foreign PLMNs who roam into their particular PLMN. Changes to restriction agreement must be administered by an operator of the OSS.
System operators have two choices for enabling roaming agreements with other operators. One choice is to establish signaling connections and billing clearinghouse arrangements with every other system operator for which they want a roaming agreement. This method is labor intensive and requires a large amount of time to establish roaming agreements with a large number of operators. The second choice is to use the services of an Interoperability Roaming Platform. These platforms provide a common signaling hub and billing clearinghouse functions that are shared among the operators who use the platform. Although this simplifies the number of operator relationships that must be created to enable roaming agreements, operators may still be required to establish arrangements with multiple platform providers.
A network operator often restricts the services that a roaming subscriber can execute in its network. These restrictions are communicated back to the roaming subscriber's HLR that manages these restrictions for the duration of the subscriber's presence in the foreign (visited) network.
The home network may restrict a subscriber's ability to roam into foreign networks.
Additionally, as new services are introduced, restrictions on these services must be added into the HLR record. It is possible that changes may be needed in either a Interoperability Roaming Platform or the visited network in order to correctly charge for these new services. These changes create additional delays in allowing subscribers to operate these services and lost revenue for network operators, since their roaming subscribers cannot execute these services soon after entering the service area.
Therefore, it would be advantageous to provide the mobile user or subscriber who desires to roam from one network operator to another and to establish roaming agreements upon entering another network operator's area is entered without complex interaction with the telephone company or long waiting periods.